Artisan scoops inaugural Coffee Stop Awards title

Patrick McGuigan
· 24 April, 2014

Putney coffee shop Artisan was named the best in the capital in the bakery category at last night's inaugural London Coffee Stop Awards.

More than 18,000 Londoners voted for their favourite coffee shop across 10 categories, with Artisan pipping The Fleet Street Press and Timberyard in Covent Garden to the title of London's Best Coffee Shop for Cakes and Bakes.

The winner of London’s Best Coffee Shop was White Mulberries, based in St Katherine’s Dock, and London’s Best New Coffee Shop was The Wren in St Nicholas Cole Abbey.

Artisan, which was set up in 2011 by Edwin Harrison and Magda Woloszyn and has another shop in Stamford Brook, sources cakes from Nick's Fine Foods, pastries from Seven Seeded and bread for its sandwiches from the Slow Bread Company.

Competition

“Coffee is at the core of what we do, but it needs to be supported by food that is just as good with the same focus on quality,” said Harrison. “The third-wave coffee sector has learned that as more competition springs up, you have to constantly look to improve and the natural place to do that is by finding the best bakery options available.”

Artisan's cakes include Chocolate and Guinness, Rose and Pistachio and the best-selling Lemon, Rosemary and Olive Oil, which all retail for £2.90 a slice.

The Coffee Stop Awards were created by Chris Ward, author and owner of Blue Dot Media, who regularly works in coffee shops. He initially created a London Coffee Stops Tube map highlighting some of the city’s best coffee locations, which received more than two million views online, leading him to launch the awards.

“We were overwhelmed with the phenomenal response received by Londoners and the support from the coffee community, who have fully embraced this event,” said Ward.

“It was great to see so much interaction between the coffee shops and the voting public from free coffee giveaways, free pastries and even free hugs – it just goes to prove how much of an integral hub these shops are for our communities and why they should be celebrated.”

The awards will be rolled out nationally in October 2014, with plans already in place for the 2015 London Coffee Stop Awards.